Coordinator McCall Highlights U.S.-Russia Ties:  In her role as chair of the U.S.-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission Subgroup on Media, IIP Coordinator Dawn McCall participated in the July 28-30 bicentennial celebrations in Fort Ross, California, the southernmost Russian settlement on the west coast of North America, which represents Russian contributions to early American culture and development.  Coordinator McCall spoke on a panel with Ambassador Mikhail Shvydkoy, President Putin's envoy for international cultural cooperation, on U.S-Russian relations, highlighting cultural diplomacy and longstanding State Department people-to-people exchange programs. 

Calling All Innovators and Entrepreneurs:  As part of the Department's efforts to promote entrepreneurship across the world, IIP's Innovation Generation Facebook page focused on the importance of innovators and entrepreneurship the week of July 23.  Posts on the theme "Overcoming Barriers" have reached over 1.4 million users, with each post averaging close to 2,700 engagements.  Fans have responded thoughtfully, including one in Afghanistan: "Fear is by far the most significant barrier against the flow of creativity and innovation.  Feel it, recognize it and let others do the same."  Innovation Generation is one of a suite of IIP social media communities that focus on innovation and entrepreneurship, including properties in French and Spanish.  

U.S. Embassy Brings Google Scientists to Brasilia: Proving that science is the international language of cool, young computer scientists from Google pulled in a crowd of 400 students at Brasilia's Marista High School for an interactive presentation entitled "You Can Do Computer Science!"  U.S. Embassy Brasilia and its IIP-supported Information Resource Center sponsored both programs.  Just a few years out of college themselves, the Google scientists provided  students with a great example of opportunities available to youth while demonstrating the role science can play in public diplomacy outreach.  The scientists also spoke at the Brasilia Science Corner, a joint project between U.S. Embassy Brasilia and the Brazilian National Council for Technological and Scientific Development.  

English Language Book Club at Mustansiriyah University:

Iraqi Female Soccer Players Learn about Sports in the U.S.:  On August 9, the Embassy hosted 15 Iraqi female athletes and their coaches for a special Olympic viewing party at the new Education Advising Center.  The event included watching the U.S. women's soccer team compete and a discussion of women's sports

with Economic Officer and former women's soccer player Stephanie Hauser.  The group discussed their perspectives on women's sports in Iraq and learned about gender equality issues in the United States.  In order to motivate the group to continue to aspire to reach their goals, time was also spent talking about exchange programs and U.S. education advising.  

Deepening Cooperation with the Ministry of Culture:

CAO Brian Schott is interviewed by the Ministry of Culture's satellite channel regarding SFA.

Consulate General Jerusalem's "Wise Leader Summer Camp" Graduates 24 Youth:  On July 24, Public Affairs Section Jerusalem held a graduation ceremony for 24 participants in "The Wise Leader Summer Camp."  The camp guided participants through the process of creating a youth government, writing a youth-based constitution, and representing the needs of young people without being directly involved in any party.  The concept of the camp was developed by ACCESS and Yes Program alumnus Abdallah Khalifah, who presented his idea at the Alumni Networking and Engagement Seminar in Jericho last April.  Assitant Cultural Affairs Officer Erin Mai and Alumni Coordinator Hadil Saleh attended the ceremony, which was hosted by the Royal Industrial Trading Company in Hebron.  

Ambassador Shapiro Outreach with Israeli Druze:  On July 23, U.S. Ambassador Daniel Shapiro visited the Druze village of Julis for a series of events with Sheikh Muwafaq Tarif and other members of the Israeli Druze community.  Ambassador Shapiro visited the tomb of the late Sheikh Amin Tarif, toured the Julis heritage museum, strolled in the scenic Al-Muna gardens, and enjoyed delicious Druze cuisine.  In his outreach to the Druze community, Ambassador Shapiro praised the vibrant diversity of Israeli society and emphasized that Israel and the U.S. share many of the same democratic values. 

Afghan Girls Connect:  Embassy Kabul's small-grants program funded the creation of a unique video collaboration between young Afghan women and Los Angeles high-school students.  Participants from Jalalabad, Herat, and Kabul responded to the question: "How can we, young women from around the world, help each other to achieve our goals and fulfill our dreams for the future?"  The high-school students in Los Angeles transcribed the interviews, created subtitles, and inserted stock photos for the 17-minute video titled Afghan Girls Connect.  The Afghans also participated in a Facebook discussion with young women from the United States, Georgia, Japan, Belize, Turkey, Luxemburg, Poland, and Portugal.  Many continue to post to the page, demonstrating the strength of the personal connections developed through this project.  

Afghan Girls Connect

  

Celebrating Ramadan and Religious Tolerance in India: 

On August 1, Consulate General Mumbai held its annual Iftar to highlight the religious diversity of Mumbai.  Over 90 people of varying ages and all faiths gathered in the atrium of the new
Consulate building.  Along with senior Muslim leaders, representatives from the Hindu, Parsi, and Catholic faiths reflected on what Ramadan meant to them. 

U.S. Air Force Band Rocks Kyrgyzstan:  In a strong showing of the partnership between the Defense Department and the State Department, U.S. Air Force band Vector performed a series of salsa and rock music concerts supporting increased understanding of the diversity of American culture.  Performance venues included three summer camps for nearly 250 children.  At all locations, campers danced and sang along with the band, and mobbed the musicians afterwards with questions and requests for photographs.  The band members created an unforgettable experience for the children and a positive impression of the U.S. military in the Kyrgyz Republic, which hosts the strategically important Transit Center at Manas.

Launch of Public-Private Partnership to Support English Language Programs:  On August 1, Deputy Assistant Secretaries Fabiola Rodriguez-Ciampoli (WHA) and Meghann Curtis (ECA) launched "Advance with English", an English language initiative for under-served, at-risk Colombian youth and English educators.  The umbrella program expands resources for English Access Microscholarships, Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistants, and Fulbright English Pathways

DAS Rodriguez-Ciampoli and DAS Curtis at Advance with English Launch in Bogot�

Microgrants.  U.S. Embassy Bogota, American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Colombia, and the Fulbright Commission will promote partnerships with AmCham members and U.S. companies that operate in Colombia.  The initiative supports President Obama's 100,000 Strong in the Americas goal and the Government of Colombia's bilingualism plan, Colombia Biling�e 2004-2019. 

Moveable Space Transforms Embassy Guatemala Stand Into Temporary American Corner at Book Fair:  At the ninth annual national book fair July 20-29, Embassy personnel greeted visitors at a U.S. Embassy stand built around a Moveable Space.  Students, teachers, and the general public stopped at the stand to take photos with U.S. presidential candidates cutouts, pick up materials about the United States, and register as Embassy Facebook fans.  Public Affairs Section Guatemala sponsored the participation of Cuban-American writer Pablo Medina, who spoke about his experience as an immigrant and writer in the United States.  Highlights of the fair also included Ambassador Chacon's wife, Alida Chacon, reading her favorite children's stories to 40 underprivileged children.  

Historic Encounter between Indigenous Peoples of the USA and Paraguay:  Public Affairs Section Asuncion hosted a Native American dance group from Arizona, the Yellow Bird Apache Dance Productions.  The group met with Study of the U.S. Institute (SUSI) alumni and their indigenous communities in Paraguay. In partnership with the Ministry of Education's Indigenous Schools Department, the group traveled across Paraguay to meet, sing and dance with the Enxlet, Nivacle, Western Guarani and Pai-Tavytera communities. They also met with the governors of two provinces who welcomed their presence and encouraged more outreach to their indigenous populations.  The visit provided some moving encounters between the Original Peoples of North and South America that broke down barriers, built bridges and encouraged development initiatives.  They also performed before packed crowds at the annual Expo Fair in Asuncion.  The main goal of the program was to show the cultural diversity of the more than 500 Native American tribes in the United States to some of the 17 indigenous Paraguayan tribes, who represent only 2% of the population.  Following the cultural exchange of dances, stories and songs, the Paraguayan communities shared their problems with the North Americans, only to find that they shared much in common.  Stories of the Yellow Bird visit were published in the most important newspapers of ABC Color, Ultima Hora and La Nacion.  The highly rated TV morning talk show "Dia a Dia" transmitted live the Hoop dance and the Eagle dance.  At the Expo Fair, they were live on the radio station "Farra."